The present invention relates generally to a trailer hitch assembly incorporating integral quarterpanel protection for the towing vehicle.
It has long been known to construct towing hitches that are mounted to vehicles in order to allow the towing of trailers or the like. In recent years, such hitches have been designed to include a receiver box having a rearwardly directed opening or cavity for the receipt of a hitch or draw bar that carries a hitch ball or other means allowing connection to a trailer. Examples of such a structure include U.S. Pat. No. 3,768,837 to Reese and U.S. Pat. No. 5,620,198 to Borchers, both owned by Reese Products, Inc., the Assignee of the present invention.
Oftentimes, the towing vehicle is operated in close quarters and/or around a sometimes cluttered work environment such as a farm, construction site or campsite where the towing vehicle could very easily, be inadvertently backed into an object. Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a trailer hitch assembly providing vehicle bumper and still more preferably, rear quarterpanel protection. This will allow one to better maintain the aesthetic appearance of the vehicle.
In order to achieve this end, the present invention provides a trailer hitch assembly incorporating integral bumper and rear quarterpanel protection for the towing vehicle. Advantageously, the trailer hitch assembly provides reliable performance over a long service life yet is still relatively inexpensive to produce.
Additional advantages and other novel features of the invention will be set forth in part in the description that follows and in part will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon examination of the following or may be learned with the practice of the invention. The advantages of the invention may be realized and obtained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.
To achieve the foregoing, and in accordance with the purposes of the present invention as described herein, an improved trailer hitch assembly is provided. The trailer hitch assembly includes a hitch receiver box, a first L-shaped frame section extending from the receiver box in a first direction and a second L-shaped frame section extending from the receiver box in a second, opposite direction. Together, the hitch receiver box, the first L-shaped frame section and the second L-shaped section form what may be referred to as the hitch frame. A first mounting bracket is carried on the first L-shaped frame section and a second mounting bracket is carried on the second L-shaped frame section. These brackets allow for the mounting of the hitch assembly to the frame of a towing vehicle.
A chain plate engages the hitch receiver box, the first L-shaped frame section and the second L-shaped frame section. The welding of all four of these steel components together insures the provision of a trailer hitch assembly of strong and durable construction.
Advantageously, the L-shaped frame sections extend around the bumper and rear quarterpanels of the towing vehicle to which the trailer hitch assembly is mounted. The L-shaped frame sections function to protect the bumper and particularly the lower rear quarterpanel body work of the vehicle from damage that might otherwise occur when backing the trailer around various objects which might be inadvertently contacted during the vehicle operation.
Additional protection may be provided by upstanding bumper guards. The first bumper guard is carried on the first L-shaped frame section. The second bumper guard is carried on the second L-shaped frame section. Preferably, the bumper guards wrap around the rear corners of the vehicle to provide excellent rear quarterpanel protection under any and all vehicle operating conditions.
Still further, the invention may be described as including a U-shaped frame. A hitch receiver box is carried on the U-shaped frame. A pair of mounting brackets are provided on the U-shaped frame to secure the trailer hitch assembly to the towing vehicle. Upstanding bumper guards may be carried on the U-shaped frame. Together the U-shaped frame and the upstanding bumper guards wrap around the rear quarterpanels of the vehicle to provide excellent protection for the body work.
Still other advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in this art from the following description wherein there is shown and described a preferred embodiment of this invention, simply by way of illustration of one of the modes best suited to carry out the invention. As it will be realized, the invention is capable of other different embodiments and its several details are capable of modification in various, obvious aspects all without departing from the invention. Accordingly, the drawings and descriptions will be regarded as illustrative in nature and not as restrictive.